Mercyhurst University Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry

Make sure to listen to Episode 12 of the Mercyhurst Made Podcast to hear from a Chemistry Department alumnus, Kyle Hart '10, Ph.D. !!

Mercyhurst Made Listen to Mercyhurst Made on Spotify. The Mercyhurst Made podcast is the official podcast of Mercyhurst University! This podcast will share stories from our students, alumni, faculty, staff and others to discuss how Mercyhurst impacted their lives. Our guests will come from different generations, lo...

Senior Seminars are all finished up! We are so proud of of our 2021 seniors!

We're celebrating by taking a look at the infamous Mario Mushroom. This lil cutie is actually based on a real mushroom, the Fly agaric, or Amanita muscaria. And there's very specific reasons this was used for the Mario mushroom.

This mushroom is hallucinogenic and toxic. Side effects include distortion of the size of perceived objects and can give off a euphoric feeling. But also you'll start to feel dizzy, tired and begin to lose your sense of time, seeing brighter colors and hearing distorted sounds. Not a fun situation to fight Bowser in.

Ibotenic acid and muscimol are the molecules causing all this. Muscimol is better understood. It’s principally responsible for the “trip.” Ibotenic acid is also considered a hallucinogen, but it’s toxic as well. It has been shown to cause brain lesions in mice, rats, and monkeys. Muscimol and ibotenic acid structures and activity are really similar to a couple neurotransmitters circulating in your system--one that gets your neurons firing, and another that slows them down. Ibotenic acid excites while muscimol inhibits.

Some people who want to eat the mushroom and NOT trip out will boil it to try and get rid of muscimol and ibotenic acid. But, there’s no guarantee that will work.

Our first ever Alumni Coffee Hour was a success! Thank you to our alumni panel for sharing their experiences and answering all the students' questions! Look out for future events!
And if you're chemistry alumni that would like to get involved feel free to contact us!

Mercyhurst University invites you to celebrate the life of Dr. Simona Carrubba on March 1st at 3:30pm in Christ the King Chapel.

Our Chemistry Club held a Valentine's Day meeting yesterday and did some great Valentine's Day trivia! Thank you to everyone who participated and make sure to watch for more fun events!

It’s ! Got your Halloween pumpkins carved yet? Here’s a look at the chemicals behind their colour and aroma in : https://cen.acs.org/articles/93/i40/Periodic-Graphics-Chemistry-Pumpkins.html

The 2020 in was awarded to Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer Doudna for their development of CRISPR technology which allows editing of the genetic code: https://www.compoundchem.com/2020/10/07/2020nobelchemistry/ 🧬✂️

We are excited to have everybody back on campus and using the chemistry office! Please take a look at this poster to learn how to reserve time in the chemistry office!

While we have you.... say hello to Heather Atkinson, a senator for the senior class of 2021! #carpediem

Class of 2020, Carmella!

"You know what Tarzan says to Cheetah the monkey, life in the jungle, no bowl of cherries."
- Mr. Carl Voltz